Life's a juggle…

Habit Review – Hot Water with Lemon

February marks the year anniversary of healthy habit number 2 – here’s how I got on…

Days habit missed: Two

Ease of doing daily: Easy

Equipment required: Kettle, lemon, mug. Travel mug handy

Is it something I’ll continue? Yes

This habit was to start each day with a mug of hot water with lemon in it. You read a lot about this being a good idea for various reasons, but at the very least it a) hydrates you first thing in the morning and b) gives you a vitamin C hit amongst other things. When I first started this habit, I was including a bit of cayenne pepper in there too, but I stopped doing that – not particularly consciously, but more fell out of the habit of it.

This has been pretty easy habit to maintain. It’s part of the routine now. On the days I’m at home, the kettle is on anyway for tea, the days I’m in the office it takes a couple of minutes to make whilst the kids are getting their shoes on. I use fresh lemons – one lasts about 3 days as I don’t like it too strong. A lemon is fairly portable too, so travelling hasn’t been too much of an issue. The couple of times I’ve forgotten have when we’ve been away and out of the normal morning routine, but it’s literally been twice in the year.

Top tips – lemon juice is obviously quite acidic, so I try and leave at least 30 mins between brushing my teeth and drinking it (brushing softens tooth enamel, so makes teeth more susceptible to acid erosion) and when I’m at home, I usually drink it through a straw to minimise contact with my teeth. I also add cold water to the juice before adding the hot – Vitamin C is easily destroyed by heat, so this helps preserve as much as possible and also means that it’s easier to drink!

So, all in all a success, another healthy habit that will endure and this one really does get my day off to a good start!